Big 12 fails to crack top 10 in preseason AP poll for the first time in history

The Big 12 failed to have a team in the preseason Associated Press top 10 poll for the first time in conference history after the release of the poll early Saturday.

Oklahoma State at No. 13 is the highest ranked Big 12 team. The Cowboys were the media’s preseason choice to win their second Big 12 title in three seasons.

Other Big 12 teams ranked included Texas at No. 15, Oklahoma at 16th and TCU at 20th.

The previous lowest for a Big 12 team in the AP preseason poll was Nebraska, which was ranked sixth in 1997 and 1999.

Baylor just missed out at cracking the top 25 for the first time in the preseason since 1986. The Bears were 27th. Defending Big 12 co-champion Kansas State was 31st.

It’s not a surprise that the Big 12 failed to have a team in the top 10, considering the diminished national expectations across the country for the conference.

The conference will have an early opportunity to turn that around with three critical non-conference games during the first week of the season. Texas Tech will travel to SMU for a nationally televised game on Aug. 30. And on the following day, TCU will face LSU in Arlington and Oklahoma State meets Mississippi State in Houston.

Win all three of those games and the Big 12 will start getting some grudging national respect.